The Twisted Love Story of a Creeper and a Tree

Bougainvillea — just another very ordinary shrub, found in abundance and treated as “wild grass” in the hilly regions of Uttarakhand.

However, this one particular shrub had something rare, something peculiar about it, something that it became the talk of the town for decades, and ruled the social media. And even today when due to incessant rain, it got uprooted, it has taken the internet by storm.

Located at the mall road (kind of the center of Almora), there was a lonely, yet another ordinary deodar tree, unnoticed and ignored. But things were about to be changed, and this Devdaar tree was destined to rise and shine.

**O**ne fine day, a few decades ago, a small Bougainvillea shrub grew next to this tree. With the monsoon and rains, the shrub flourished and the deodar tree, it grew even taller and stronger.

Now, let me tell you a thing out two about bougainvillea. Since it is a thorny shrub, people in this region use it as fences. Many others will plant a bougainvillea only at the backside of their houses, away from the main entrance to avoid bad omen of clothes being stuck in the thorns of bushes, as if the shrub is trying to stop you.

The creeper soon found itself leaning on the strong, tall, youthful deodar tree. The tree was happy to support a tiny shrub. Thus started a friendship of a bush and tree. As the days passed by, the creeper grew in leaps and bounds and wrapped itself around the deodar. Soon, the woody brown trunk of the tree was all covered — wrapped in the soft greenish leaves of bougainvillea.

Was deodar happy? Not at all. Despite all the strength and the hard outer bark, the creeper was wrapping itself around the tree one leave at a time. The ignored lonely tree looked desperately to everyone and anyone who passes by hoping someone will come to its rescue and uproot the creeper.

. . .

**T**hen came the November — the first November when the first flower on the bougainvillea blossomed. The deodar fell in love at the very first sight. There were butterflies everywhere, or so it seemed. The months of frustration were replaced by a life-affirming feeling. Soon the bougainvillea bloomed, the deodar was covered in purple. And with every blooming flower, the deodar grew taller, stronger, greener, happier — or so it felt, but still ignored by the busy people of the town.

The warmth of their love made the chilly winters fade away, and during the windy spring, the deodar and bougainvillea danced together in a unison, enjoying the pleasant weather and newly found love. And in no time came the exhilarating monsoon again. The creeper grew, wrapping itself around the deodar, covering the entire tree, and deodar was equally welcoming, supporting the creeper.

As the years passed, the entire deodar tree engulfed by the creeper. The deodar was waiting patiently for the time when the bougainvillea would bloom, for it knew for sure, they(deodar & bougainvillea) will not be ignored this time, they will no longer be lonely.

. . .

When the bougainvillea bloomed, it was the talk of the town. The deodar-bougainvillea duo soon became the iconic landmark of the city Almora. The “Bougainvillea Tree” — an ordinary creeper and an ordinary tree in their (twisted) love for each other became a lodestar, an inspiration to dream big and achieve greatness.

Also published at - https://medium.com/%E0%A4%AA%E0%A4%B9%E0%A4%BE%E0%A5%9C%E0%A5%80-%E0%A4%A0%E0%A5%87%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%87-pahadi-thehre/the-twisted-love-story-of-a-creeper-a-tree-9bc5fc054bf8